With his mastery of the Dominican Republic's merengue tradition, New York-born and Puerto Rican-raised vocalist Elvis Crespo wasted no time in reaching the apex of contemporary Latin music. His debut album, Suavemente, reached the top slot on Billboard's National Hot Latin Top 40 in 1998, and spawned two record-breaking singles -- "Tu Sonrisa" and the title track. Crespo received Billboard awards for Latin album of the year, Male artist of the year, group or duet of the year, and song of the year.
